It was almost exactly four years ago when southern California fires reached a magnitude comparable to today's disaster.  Two of the most extensive that year were the Grand Prix and Old Fires in the San Bernardino and Angeles National Forests near Redlands. 

Here's a screenshot showing the 2003 fire perimeters in gray and current fire perimeters in yellow. Active MODIS hot spots are shown in orange. You can see how the current fires threaten to consume areas that were spared in 2003.